Hey guys - this is my first review - so be gentle. Normally we Canadians get things months later...

So yesterday I received my VTSC George. Here's the lowdown:

Packaging: A+. First off, the homage to the old Star Wars Stormtrooper cardback is very nice. The fact that they made it bi-lingual for the Canadian card is also a nice touch, although I don't think the origianl cards were bi-lingual back in the day. It comes in the clamshell, which is also in a white mailerbox (similar to the mailer box that the early bird figs came in). As I ordered 2 of them (one to open, one to keep carded), they came in an even bigger mailer box, so they were quite well protected. As an FYI - the clamshell was taped shut.

Likeness: A+ I think the likeness to the '70's era Lucas is spot on. Makes me wonder why they can't get the same for other figs. This is the only good thing about the figure. The stormtrooper body and helmet also have a very good likeness.

Articulation: D. For a VTSC figure, I was expecting more. A lot more. The points of articulation are:

Neck - hinge joint, plus swivel. It works well, and does not have the annoying appearance of the ball joint, but doesn't let you tilt his head to the side. He nods well though, and the joint isn't distracting.

Shoulders - Double hinged I think...

Elbows - swivel. Again, I'm not sure why a ball joint wasn't used here either. Add to the fact the wrists are not articulated, his upper body is somewhat limited to the poses he can take.

Waist - swivel. Pretty standard. Stomach articulation would have been a nice touch.

Hips (or top of the legs) - standard swivel.

Knees - ball jointed (I think). No ankle articulation.

For a VTSC figure, I was expecting a lot more articulation. I believe they used the commtech mold, and not the previous VOTC mold (which would have made more sense to me)..and thusly, the articulation is not up to par for VTSC figure.

Accessories: C. Comes with a blaster, and a helmet. The helmet is very rubbery, which I hate. It doesn't look too bad, but it seems that, when it is on, it is a little large for the figure. I do admit that I prefer the hard plastic helmets, flimsy plastic just seems cheap to me. The blaster is the standard one.

Overall: B. When you get down to it, this is a novelty figure. (possibly EU?) The selling feature is Lucas' likeness 1st and foremost, which is done very well. A better helmet would have been nice, but I'm not really going to be having him wear the helmet too often in my display. I'm also not a "SA for every fig" type person, but I think on this figure it would have made sense, since the mold already exists, and we're only changing the head, which why I can't give it a higher grade than B.

JEDIpartner

06-28-2006, 01:27 PM

Honestly, this is one of those figures that I think would be best left on a card. It doesn't really serve any purpose being out in the dioramas or play scenes as, well, George neither pulled a helmet off and made a cameo nor did he direct A New Hope in a Stormtrooper costume. Still, it's nice that they did something a little better than a totally static figure for him.

Nice review, BTW. Thanks for posting that Pegs, ol' buddy!

Darth Cruel

06-28-2006, 01:39 PM

Thanks for the review Pegger. It was fine. I agree that this figure will be a carded one for me as well.